Page 154 of Teacher's Pet

His grip tightens around me, his chest rising and falling in a heavy sigh.

“Yeah,” he murmurs, his voice rough, raw with emotion. “I fucking meant it.”

Swallowing, I lift my head, shifting just enough to cup his face between my hands. His skin is warm beneath my fingertips, his gaze searching mine.

“Do you promise?” I whisper.

Something flickers in his eyes, guilt, hesitation, but then, he raises his pinky between us, a quiet, solemn gesture.

“The first time I promised you something,” he says, his voice hoarse, “I failed.” His lips twitch slightly, almost bitter. “Pretty sure you have to cut my pinky off if I break this one.”

A breathless laugh escapes me, and finally, finally, a small smile breaks across his lips.

I hook my pinky around his, pressing my thumb over his knuckle, watching as he does the same.

His promise is sealed.

His word is solidified.

Then, softly, as warmth blooms in my chest, I whisper, “Then… I think I love you too, Noah.”

His eyes flicker, something shifting, something bright, something alive.

He looks at me like I am the only thing in his world.

Then, with a slow, wicked grin, he leans in, gently laying me back against the couch, his body hovering over mine.

“Think?” he teases, his voice low, warm, dangerous.

His lips brush against mine, his breath tangling with mine, his hands already exploring, already claiming.

“Guess we’ll have to change that,” he murmurs, his grin widening just before his mouth crashes against mine.

God knows how long we were in that bathroom.

All I know is that he is exactly what I need.

Chapter 28

Noah

Leaving the bathroom after Ana, I reach for her, straightening her clothes, relishing the way she stumbles toward the door, wrecked, spent, utterly undone by what I just did to her.

But fuck, I needed that.

I needed to feel her, to taste her, to remind her just how desperate I am to have her close again. To make her understand that she’s not just something I want. She’s something I need.

The words I love you were never meant for me. Never something I thought I’d say to anyone.

But Ana, God, Ana.

For two months, she was all I thought about. Her smile, the way her hands felt against my skin, the sound of her voice in the dark. I never knew what it meant to feel true pain until I was forced to endure her absence, a hollow ache that never fucking left.

Loving her came fast, violent, all at once.

I know she was scared she was just a quick fuck, and maybe... maybe at first she was. But somewhere along the way, I lost sight of anything and anyone else. My focus narrowed, locked onto her, and before I could stop myself, I was already falling.

The first night I crashed at Jake’s, he made his power known. He showed me pictures of Ana, ones taken when she wasn’t looking. His way of proving he had his eyes on her long before I did. Then came the cigarette burns, pressed against the back of my neck, just like Dad used to do. A reminder. A lesson. That at any moment, at any time, he could shatter my world.

---